FAA regulations require Aircraft Rescue and Fire Fighting units to be on site at all commercial airports when a pilot declares an emergency.

DENVER — Federal investigators are working to determine what caused an engine fire on American Airlines Flight 1006 at Denver International Airport, which forced passengers to evacuate onto the wing. 

The fire broke out after the Boeing 737-800 landed and was taxiing to the gate Thursday, prompting a chaotic evacuation that has raised questions about why passengers had to go out onto the wing, why emergency responders were not in position when the plane touched down and what caused the fire.

The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) is leading the investigation and will be looking at maintenance records, mechanical failures, and the timeline of the fire to determine what went wrong.

Why Passengers Were Forced onto the Wing

Passengers were seen evacuating onto the left wing of the aircraft, a rare event in commercial aviation. 9NEWS Aviation Expert Greg Feith said only half of the plane’s eight exits were usable due to the fire and the aircraft’s position at the gate.

“The problem with the DIA fire was that the jetway hadn’t been pulled up to the aircraft yet,” Feith said. “Without the jetway, you can’t use that exit anymore because the slide won’t deploy. There’s not enough room… This one would be available, but this engine was on fire, and this is where all the smoke was.”

With three exits near the burning engine unusable and one front exit unusable due to the jetway, passengers had limited ways out.

Why Firefighters Weren’t Waiting at Landing

Passengers on board expected to see emergency crews on standby when they landed—but they weren’t.

“I was trying to think rationally, like, there should be fire engines here when we land if this plane is on fire. Certainly, there’s gonna be somebody there to extinguish it,” passenger Ingrid Hibbitts said.

FAA regulations require Aircraft Rescue and Fire Fighting units to be on site at all commercial airports when a pilot declares an emergency—but in this case, the pilot did not.

An air traffic control audio recording confirms that the pilot did not initially report an emergency when controllers checked in.

ATC: “1006, just to verify—not an emergency, still correct?”
Pilot: “Nah, we just have a high engine vibration, so we are cruising slower than normal.”

“The plane was diverted with no explanation,” a spokesperson for DIA said in a statement.

Because the flight was diverted due to an engine vibration, not an active fire, standard emergency procedures were not activated until after landing.

“The fire began once the plane came to the gate. When the fire was first observed, our emergency notification system was activated. Fire response is part of that system. All emergency response procedures were followed as protocol,” the statement from DIA said.

What Caused the Fire?

Aviation experts say engine fires on modern jets are rare, and investigators are working to determine how the fire started.

Passengers described smelling gas and fuel before landing.

Feith said it’s a possibility the fire was caused by a punctured fuel line, possibly from a broken engine blade.

“It’s evident from the type of fire that occurred, with thick black smoke pooling under the engine,” Feith said. “That’s indicative of a fuel-based fire.”

Feith said a big part of the investigation will involve analyzing maintenance records, engine components, and flight data to determine whether a mechanical failure or improper maintenance contributed to the fire.

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